Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Schroder Investment Management Group

Schroder Investment Management Group lowered its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 28,457 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 1,756 shares during the quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $6,644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $4,714,927,000 after buying an additional 139,485 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $2,318,716,000 after purchasing an additional 196,249 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,133,828,000 after purchasing an additional 62,186 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $945,385,000 after buying an additional 580,293 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $967,340,000 after buying an additional 103,281 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NSC. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Loop Capital cut Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $268.68.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 7.6 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock traded up $15.75 on Wednesday, reaching $222.09. 3,668,098 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,243,802. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $238.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $247.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $201.63 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The company has a market cap of $54.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods in the United States. The company transports agriculture, forest, and consumer products comprising soybeans, wheat, corn, fertilizers, livestock and poultry feed, food products, food oils, flour, sweeteners, ethanol, lumber and wood products, pulp board and paper products, wood fibers, wood pulp, beverages, and canned goods; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products comprising crude oil, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, sand, and natural gas liquids; metals and construction materials, such as steel, aluminum products, machinery, scrap metals, cement, aggregates, minerals, clay, transportation equipment, and military-related products; and automotive, including finished motor vehicles and automotive parts, as well as coal.